Murphy: Vikings fans have reached acceptance phase of life with backup QBs
Brian Murphy writes about living with the reality that Kirk Cousins' injury took down the Vikings' season
By Brian Murphy
’Tis the season of quarterbacking folly, and some Vikings fans have had visions of sugar plums and hidden gems dancing in their heads for week after unrealistic week.
Denial cuts bone deep when you’re wishing on a twinkling star like Jaren Hall, Josh Dobbs or Nick Mullens to sustain competency at such a pivotal position and fulfill fading playoff dreams. One of these guys may still take a postseason snap as the starter or a janitor because this unlikeliest of unpredictable Vikings seasons is poised for more high drama the next two weeks despite the diminishing on-field stakes.
At this point, a playoff berth would be a participation trophy, a token of valiance for noble coach Kevin O’Connell and his battered locker room for keeping everyone entertained and engaged since Kirk Cousins was mothballed two months ago.
Anything more is being greedy or gullible like Mullens’ delusions of grandeur after his four-interception performance in Sunday’s 30-24 loss to the Detroit Lions.
“Personally, I think I just have to take the next step; I believe that I’m a very good quarterback, but what’s it going to take to take the next step?” Mullens actually said out loud.
As Dirty Harry Callahan smirked in “Magnum Force” after his pencil-pushing lieutenant blew himself up trying to arrest the renegade detective, “A man’s got to know his limitations.”
There is no next step, Nick, not with 29 interceptions in 27 games, including six in two starts for Minnesota. There is a ceiling in this cutthroat business and Mullens has been ramming his head on it since he started his undrafted journeyman’s journey five years ago.
Do not be lulled into thinking a few more first-team practices, a better rushing attack or a dialed-down game plan will unburden Mullens from making the same poor decisions and wobbly throws that have plagued back-up quarterbacks since the evolution of the forward pass.
On Tuesday Kevin O’Connell said the team was still evaluating where they would go next at quarterback but Mullens, Dobbs and Hall are variations of the same flawed players who fill out rosters but happen to play the most important and scrutinized position in professional sports.
None gives the Vikings a better chance at victory against Green Bay on New Year’s Eve, just variable options for finding another improbable way to win. Those options are dwindling in direct correlation to how their infirmary is filling up, yet here we are entering Week 16 with Minnesota still wheezing in the playoff race and intrigue building for another offseason reckoning.
We won’t look away this Sunday night because we can’t. Not with a chance for the Vikings to dagger their hated border rivals at U.S. Bank Stadium, where the collective blood-alcohol level at kickoff should ensure a contact buzz even for those not reveling.
These final two games against the Packers and a Lions rematch Jan. 7 in Detroit are going to impact the 2024 offseason more than we know, steering how Vikings secure their future at quarterback.
There is a huge difference between finishing 9-8 and almost assuredly getting bounced in the first round and 7-10, where Minnesota would finally face hard truths with access to a top-10 draft choice.
Cousins’ absence has made the heart grow fonder for an overachieving, statistically dominant signal caller who will turn 36 after recovering from major surgery with maximum negotiating leverage and one playoff win in hand.
The Vikings have to figure out how to pay Cousins, Justin Jefferson, Danielle Hunter and a host of hybrid defensive players who have been willed into moments of greatness by a defensive coordinator, Brian Flores, who may have positioned himself for a return to the head coaching ranks.
It’s been exhilarating and maddening to watch these last two seasons, but the off-field bill is coming due after compounding interest from 2022’s free-for-all.
Enjoy what’s left of this regular-season ride, but lower your quarterbacking bar and postseason expectations. Don’t think of it as tanking but getting from here to the new league year on a half tank.
Everyone’s got to know their limitations.
Yep.. Would much rather see us go 7-10 and get the jump on the future. We have a lot of good pieces and pretty good coaching. No way (especially after losing DJ and Hock) we go to the SB. Nobody wants a tank in management (and of course players) but understanding there is a much lowered ceiling means enjoy the young guys learning and pray for a top 10 pick....